


Packing Earth

by tsukinofaerii



Series: Wildflowers and Werewolves [2]
Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: F/M, Families of Choice, recovering from feral behavior
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-04-15
Updated: 2014-04-15
Packaged: 2018-01-19 01:31:51
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,991
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1450321
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tsukinofaerii/pseuds/tsukinofaerii
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>After six years running wild in the woods, Allison isn't very sure she wants to adjust back to civilization. A guaranteed warm place to sleep at night and a pair of werewolves to snuggle is nice, but if clothes aren't her downfall then her secrets might be.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Packing Earth

Allison sat at the tiny motel table, chair hard under her bare ass, everything too sharp and flat and wrong. In front of her, a plastic bowl of dry cereal and spoon sat there, mocking her. The room was empty, dead silence heavy on her skin. No bugs trundling around, no bird calls or squirrels or trees creaking in the wind. 

She stared at the spoon, lips pulled back to show the sharp edges of her teeth. Slowly, she curled her fingers around it and lifted. It felt weird and unsteady in her hand, but she didn't want to just fist it. When she'd tried the first time, Laura had given her that _look_. Pitying. 

No one was going to pity her if she could help it. 

The spoon wobbled in her grip as she dipped it into the dried Cheerios and scooped up a few. Just a few, because more than that took control that she didn't have. Carefully, she shifted it up toward her mouth. Halfway there, it wobbled and tilted. Cheerios spilled across the table and down to the carpeted floor, catching in the crease of her bare thighs and rolling off her knees. 

Breathing heavily, nostrils flared, she glared at the spoon. Anger vibrated through her bones. Anger at the walls, and the cereal and her stupid fingers that couldn't even do something as simple as hold a spoon anymore. She wanted to throw open the door and run, back to the woods, back to her den, where things were simpler. Desperate and cold and hungry, but familiar. Not full of old memories that belonged to a stranger. 

Snarling, she threw the spoon at the wall. It hit a picture of some flowers, knocking the frame askew before it fell the bed and came to a bouncing stop. Then she dropped her head to the table and tried to remember what it was like to breathe again. Her hair fanned around her cheeks and temples, no longer able to hide her face since the mats had been cut out. Somewhere there was a bag of clothes Laura said they were going to make her wear. Clothes that smelled wrong, and were too stiff and brightly colored, clothes that she couldn't move in. 

The woods were right there, right next to the cheap rented room Laura had gotten. It would have been easy to run. To run and run and never look back. Laura and Derek were gone. They wouldn't even know she'd left for hours. It had only been a few days, anyway. They wouldn't miss her, really. She could do it. She could leave them and go be alone again, where there were no spoons, no clothes, nothing but daily survival.

Limbs stiff, she pushed away from the table and stood. Then, one step at a time, she headed for the door. It opened into bright blue skies and a cold breeze. 

She left it open behind her.

* * *

"Allison!" 

The door slammed closed so loudly that it rattled the cheap hotel windows.

" _Allison_!"

"She's gone, Laura. You heard the manager." Derek's voice was soft but flat, nearly emotionless. 

"Don't say things like that—Allison!" There was a sound of things rustling, and the unmistakable noise of someone sniffing the air deeply. Booted feet shuffled across shabby carpet. 

The bathroom door opened.

Allison curled in on herself as light slashed across the comforting darkness of the bathroom, hiding her face in the dirty clothes she'd bundled into the bathtub as a makeshift nest. The light still burned her eyes no matter how tightly she clenched them. Mr. Bear nestled between her breasts. He couldn't comfort her though—Laura had scrubbed him clean, and he just didn't smell right any more. 

Footsteps clicked on the tile, and then someone set a warm palm against the small of her back, where old burn scars pulled tight across her skin. "We thought you'd left," Laura said softly. 

She hunched her shoulders up around her ears. "I did." Words on her lips felt as awkward as the spoon in her hand, but they didn't grate like tree bark any more. "I came back." 

"Thank you for that." Laura's hand ran down her back soothingly, nails scratching softly. "Do you want some space?"

Allison nodded without looking up from her clothing pile.

Without another word, Laura got up. The door clicked, and when Allison finally opened her eyes it was dark again.

* * *

When the door opened again, the light wasn't nearly as bright. Allison turned her head to watch Derek's silhouette fidget in the doorway between the ragged stumps of Mr. Bear's ears. Somewhere in the main room, Laura muttered something, but none of it was loud enough for the words to carry.

Silently, Derek stepped in and closed the door behind him, sending the bathroom back into near total darkness. His eyes glinted in the little light that was available. The door let out a hollow sound, and then there was a meatier noise. The little crack of light that seeped in between the door and its frame was blocked at the bottom edge, highlighting the curve of his bare shoulder and a hint of blue jeans. 

She closed her eyes and just listened to him breathe. The hard edge of the bathtub became rock. Dirty clothes could have been leaves or old animal hides she'd saved. He filled what was left, cutting through the silence with just enough life to settle her back into her own skin.

Keeping her eyes closed, Allison pulled herself and Mr. Bear out of her nest and reached out in the dark. Her fingers closed around the arch of his foot. From there, she followed it up to his knee, his hip. Sighing, she curled up against him, ear pressed to his chest. If she listened hard, she could hear his heartbeat tick up before settling back into a soothing rhythm. He smelled like leaves and dirt, something warm-spice that tickled her nose, a little bit of sweat. No chemicals or fake scents like everything else. She liked it. 

After a while, Derek's hand came to rest between her shoulder blades, lightly. Allison made a soft, comfortable noise and tucked her face down into Mr. Bear. 

They didn't move until morning.

* * *

They didn't say anything about why she'd run away. Allison let her gratitude for that show by not throwing the books Laura brought her too hard. 

It had been a long day of little snipes, of Laura trying to make her wear more than a loose shirt, and Allison taking a knife to a pair of boots. They grated at each other, which Allison could handle mostly, but then the books had come out of their bag and she was done. 

"I can read!" she insisted loudly, shaking one of the ones that she hadn't thrown against the wall. It was an ABC book. _ABCs_! "I'm not a baby!" 

"I didn't say you were." Laura crossed her arms stubbornly. Red glowed in her eyes, like it did when Allison particularly got to her. "If you can read this, then I'll get something else. But you have to prove it to me."

Allison bared her teeth. "No. I won't."

For the first time ever, Laura showed hers back. They were bigger and much sharper than Allison's, and growing. "Yes," she growled. "You will."

Even when Laura's teeth turned into full-sized fangs, Allison didn't flinch. "Why?" she demanded. 

The bones of Laura's face cracked and shifted. Her ears started to poke up through her hair, and more hair grew down across her jaw. "Because I am your alpha, and I say you will!" she roared, loud enough that the floor above them thumped a warning.

Slowly, Allison lowered the book, still staring. The werewolf-face didn't scare her; she'd run from a bear once. Those were much scarier than werewolves. "What's that?" she asked. "Alpha?" 

"Leader," Derek spoke up. He'd taken cover in a chair against the far wall while they fought, but that question stirred him into sitting up straighter. "An alpha leads a pack of wolves. Or werewolves. A beta follows an alpha." 

Allison bit her lip. "I'm not a wolf," she said cautiously, watching their faces. 

The red faded from Laura's eyes, though her face didn't change back. "I'm still your alpha," she answered, voice rough and slurred around her teeth. "And you are going to read that book." 

Frowning, Allison looked down at the thing. It was big and yellow, with cardboard pages and a bright red apple on the cover. Her fingers slid over the cover. Then she huffed a sigh and flopped down on the bed, opening the book to the first thick page. 

The letters blurred together at first, flattened like a picture. Colors were bright and fake, a little shiny. It didn't make it easier. Gritting her teeth, Allison stared until familiar shapes started to float to the surface. 

"A is for _alpha_ ," she read slowly, glancing at them pointedly over the top of the book. "B is for _boy_ — beta. B is for beta. C is for cat..."

* * *

The next few days passed easily enough. Once Allison had proven she could read, mostly, Laura had done better than left it alone. She'd started bringing hot breakfast in the morning to make up for it. Bacon was _amazing_. Tasty, warm, and she didn't have to use a spoon. 

Allison curled up on a chair and nibbled on the bacon off her plate, watching Laura and Derek go through their share of breakfast. There were pancakes and syrup, chopped up fruit and eggs that Laura would make her eat, but mostly all she cared about was the bacon. It was a nice, quiet morning, with no ABCs or spoons or anything else upsetting.

Which was why Laura had to ruin it with words. "I know you don't want to talk, but..." Her eyes glowed red as she peered at Allison across the table. "Why did you run away?"

Turning her head, Allison shrugged. She didn't want to talk about it. Wasn't sure she had the words for it—didn't think they'd understand how big everything was, the frustration of remembering when she could do something simple and not being able to do it now. It seemed silly, thinking things like that when there was food in front of her and a soft place to sleep and two people who would keep her warm when it got cold. 

"Alright then." A chair creaked, and Laura shuffled closed. Her long, dark hair pooled over Allison's shoulder as she leaned into her. A steady, warm hand wrapped around the back of her neck, thumb stroking gently. "Why did you come back?"

The flower pictures on the wall blurred. Allison's eyes burned. She blinked away the tears, refusing to give them a hold on her. "I saw a police car."

"And it scared you?" 

She nodded. 

Laura's arm slipped around her shoulder, combing back the short fringe of Allison's new haircut. "Derek and I won't let the police have you. You know that, right?"

Allison snorted, but turned her head so she could bury her nose in Laura's collarbone. A lot of good that did her when she'd wanted to _go_. But she couldn't say that without choking on the words. 

Derek settled in on her other side, warm and big and gentle, arm curling around her waist. His cheek rested against her shoulder, scruffy-rough on her skin. It almost made her sorry she'd hit him with a rock so many times. Not very sorry, but a little.

She liked it when they held her. Breathing was easier. The walls didn't want to close up and trap her inside. They were there for _her_ , with her. They'd wanted her to be theirs. That needed to be remembered. 

Laura kissed the side of her head, nosing there. "It's been a week, and you've been through a lot, cub," she said quietly, words muffled by Allison's hair. "Do you want to go back to the woods? Just for a visit?"

Allison tensed, twisting to peek up at them hopefully. A visit—a chance to run and breathe and stretch. It sounded too good to be true. 

"You'll have to put on clothes," Derek added, squeezing her hip. "And no rocks."

She looked up out of Laura's shoulder to smile. "No rocks."

* * *

Allison appreciated clothes much more when the wind chilled her face and fingers, but the rest of her stayed warm. She leaned over Derek's shoulder to stick her head out the passenger side window as they bumped over old dirt roads. The air was fresh and clean in her nose, and the sun beat down _just_ right on her head, warming the tips of her ears. Little animals moved around in the trees; it felt like the first live things she'd seen all week besides the werewolves. 

Laura pulled over in a little off-road nook. Before she'd even turned the car off, Allison climbed over Derek and out the window, sprinting off into the woods. Old leaves crackled under her new boots, slick with melted frost and a bit of rain. She ran until her lungs burned with the cold and her head was spinning. When she couldn't go anymore, she flopped down in the dirt, wiggling until she was comfortable. 

No one had followed her, but she didn't for a second think that they'd lost her. Her trail was wide open, a flurry of scattered leaves and broken branches. Moreso, she'd seen Laura sniff out a dropped grape on the floor. If she wanted to get away from them, she'd have to be sneaky. 

Sure enough, they appeared in the distance a few minutes later, strolling together casually. Allison pushed herself upright and waved until she was sure they'd seen her. Then she rolled to her knees and scrambled away, diving into the thickest part of the woods. 

Making sure to keep the downwind, she crept through the woods. Her new clothing was bulky and awkward, slowing her down because she had to avoid the little branches and things that wouldn't have caught on her before. But eventually, she was able to curve all the way around and sneak up behind them. She barely dared to breathe as she crept along in their wake, easing up as close as she could get.

"We're all hiding secrets," Laura was saying, voice light and bouncing. She had her head tipped back, dark hair shining in the sun where it streamed down her back. "You like her." 

"I liked a lot of people," Derek muttered. He shoved his hands in his jacket pockets so hard that wrinkles formed along his back. "We should be careful."

A rock wobbled under Allison's foot. She crouched down before she could lose her balance and alert them. They got farther away, voices fading into a hushed murmur. She glared down at the rock, slowly easing off it until she was back on firm ground. By then, they'd already gotten so far ahead that there was no way she'd be able to catch up _and_ keep quiet.

So she didn't bother.

Allison rose to her feet and sprang into a flat-out run. She burst into the small space between Laura and Derek, laughing when they practically leaped aside to keep from being bowled over. Certain she had their attention, she darted off to the side and back into the thicket. They were just a second behind her, calling out her name (Laura) and wordless growls (Derek). 

It didn't take long for them to catch up, Derek getting first. Allison let out a happy shriek as he tackled her to the forest floor, shielding her from the impact when Laura threw herself atop them. They formed a heavy blanket of sweat and skin, and she happily burrowed in, closing her eyes to soak up their presence. 

She could do this. At least for a little while, she could do this. 

Then she twisted around and squirmed free, shooting off into the woods. Behind, they rushed to catch her, so tangled in each other that she got a good way ahead before they could chase. Allison laughed and let her feet carry her away.

* * *

Derek's chest was a warm, soft expanse of muscle that Allison couldn't help but lean into after hours of play. She liked Laura too, but Derek was _Derek_. She couldn't really explain it, so she didn't even try, just snuggled up under his arm while Laura made the walk back to the car to get food. He didn't seem to mind, anyway. She was still pleasantly tired from playing all morning, limbs a little sore from the much needed stretch. Knowing food was on its way was extra nice. Food hadn't come to _her_ since before the fire. 

The thought crept up on her like a nasty snake hiding in the den. She ducked her face against Derek's chest like she could hide from herself. 

Derek ran his fingers through her hair. "What's wrong?" 

Allison bit her lip and shook her head. 

"I know it's something." His fingers never stopped combing and twisting. It was like what Laura did when she was trying to be soothing, but a little more awkward, like he didn't know how to be nice. Maybe he didn't. "Your heartbeat just went through the roof." 

Her tongue felt awkward again, too stiff. Allison curled it in her mouth, flexing it before carefully saying, "Werewolves." 

He stopped petting her. 

Something in Allison's chest gave an unhappy twist. She squinched her eyes close and twisted deeper against him, until not even a little bit of light leaked through to her eyes. "You and Laura...?" 

"...Yeah." Tenderly, his hand came down again, but he didn't start stroking. She wished he would. "You think we're monsters?"

Allison shook her head, but she still didn't look up. 

"Why not?" Strong fingers hooked under her chin, dragging her up from the safe space she'd made. Derek wasn't smiling—Derek didn't smile. But he looked soft around the eyes, which helped. 

"Because—" Air hiccupped in her chest, threatened to choke her, but she met his eyes head-on, jaw set. "Monsters kill people." 

His eyebrows rose. "And you don't think we do?" His voice was a little strained, a little sad, and that just wouldn't do at all. 

Scowling, she flipped around to straddle his thighs, sitting firmly atop them to keep him trapped. "No." One of her fingers poked sharply into the middle of his chest. " _You_ aren't a monster." That much she was absolutely certain of. Derek might get glowy eyes and fangs, but he was a good person. 

Quick as a blink, he grabbed her finger, fisting it so tightly that she couldn't pull away no matter how hard she yanked. "Are you sure?" 

Allison huffed and, when she couldn't win her hand back, leaped in the other way. She wrapped herself around Derek's body, shoving him back. He went down in a flurry of leaves, leaving her to perch over him. 

"Yes," she said seriously, punctuating it with a kiss right to the middle of his frown. He startled, but Allison curled her fingers in his jacket and held on until he stopped trying to get away and started kissing back. 

She'd never kissed anyone before, not even him back in the den. Her first thought was _scratchy_. His beard rubbed at her cheek and jaw, a little burn that made her nose wrinkle. His lips parted for her and that was weird. Good and hot and slick, strange in a pleasant way. She made a content noise, spreading her palms over his chest to feel the way his muscles pulled and shivered. There were too many clothes—she was starting to really hate clothing—but he was still hot and firm, wonderfully alive between her knees. 

Derek's fingers crept under the edge of her shirt, tracing up her waist. Allison arched sideways when it tickled, snapping at his lip playfully. She prodded his stomach, where his shirt had ridden up to show the dark trail of hair she'd had so much fun playing with before. Grabbing some, she tugged gently, fascinated by the way his chest inflated and his stomach caved in. 

Rather than give in, he slid the flat of his palm up her ribs instead, firm enough that it didn't tickle this time. He pulled her down against him so she fit right against his chest, arms wrapping tight like she might slip away. 

_No rocks_. Allison sighed softly, bumping her cheek against his before burrowing down against him. The winter sun was warm on her back, and Derek was warm on her front. Somewhere nearby, Laura was singing loud and off-key, on her way with good food and clean water. It was, Allison thought, very close to perfect.

* * *

It had all been a lie.

"No." Allison dug in her heels, bracing them on the edge of the car door. 

Laura and Derek had her by the forearms, trying to bodily haul her out onto the sidewalk, but Allison had the advantage. Neither one of them wanted to hurt her, while she didn't really care if she hurt them. They'd get better. She, on the other hand, was going to be stuck and prodded and probably someone would see her scars and call the police and then she'd be arrested and _no_.

Her breath started to come in sharp, angry pants. " _No_ ," she repeated, louder. The car rocked as she struggled back. It was too small, too trapped, she needed to run away _now_. She wouldn't go, they couldn't make her, _she wouldn't_. 

"It's just the doctor's office." Laura tried to grab her ankle, but Allison locked one knee and lashed out with the other foot. It planted right on Laura's cheek, and Allison was able to get a whole hand-width back into the car's backseat before Derek's grip on her knee stopped her.

" _No_!" 

"Just let _go_ —" Derek actually scowled. He shouldered the door open wider and grabbed both of her ankles. "Laura, you're catcher."

Allison grabbed for the back of the driver's seat to try and hold on but Derek had his hands around her shins. With one hard push, he shoved her legs together and threw himself backward. She shrieked as she was thrown legs-first out of the car. Before she could even curl up for impact, Laura caught her by the shoulders, swinging her up in the air. The world blurred, and the next thing Allison knew Derek's hard shoulder slammed into her stomach, knocking the wind out of her. 

Blood rushed to her head, making it feel suddenly heavy and hot. They swayed weirdly as Derek carried her up the sidewalk to a large building with the word _vet_ emblazoned on the door in gold. Allison pounded at Derek's lower back and squirmed desperately to try and slip free. He didn't even flinch. 

"This is what I get for picking up strays." Red-purple was already blossoming across Laura's cheek and jaw. She rubbed at it ruefully, wincing as she opened the glass door. "I'll go talk to Deaton. You keep her in the waiting room."

"You mean I'll get accused of kidnapping," Derek muttered.

Twisting, Allison kicked out, trying to nail Laura again as Derek carried her past. It missed by a foot, so she turned it into a jab at Derek's head with her knee. He blocked it, but she got him with her other boot to the side. 

They kept struggling as Laura vanished into the hall behind the counter, Allison trying to slither her way out of Derek's grip while Derek went through contortions to keep her from doing exactly that. She landed a couple of blows. Nothing that fazed him, but she felt a glow of satisfaction every time he let out a pained grunt. 

A door clicked closed, and a started voice asked, "Are you okay? Do I need to call the cops on this guy?" 

Their heads snapped around. The boy was maybe her age—however old that was—and glaring death at Derek with big brown eyes. He looked like he'd take the heavy bag over his shoulder and attack with it if he could. 

She already liked him.

"Don't worry, Scott. They're... friends." A man in a white doctor's coat stepped out from the back hall. "Derek, could you bring Allison back here, please? I'd like to have a chat with her." 

Baring her teeth, Allison growled loudly enough to make Scott jump. "No doctors." 

The man smiled sweetly. If she hadn't been hanging upside down from a werewolf's shoulder in his office, she might have believed it, it was such a nice smile. "I'm not a doctor, I'm a veterinarian."

Derek followed him back, carting her through the hallway like a bag of cat food. Laura was waiting by a door. Allison tried to scratch at her as she was carried past, but Laura stepped out of reach. Then she was being dumped on a cold metal exam table and pinned in place by Derek's hands on her shoulders. 

Cages were stacked along the walls. Big ones, little ones, ones like jail cells for animals. The whole place smelled like fear and medicine, sharp and cool, hurting her nose. No matter where she looked, there was no escape but out the single door. She scratched Derek's forearms bloody, slapped at him, wrenched her arm trying to get to the door. Nothing she did was any good. 

The doctor came in, shrugging off his white coat and folding it over the back of a chair. "I think you and your brother should go for a walk, maybe do some shopping," he told Laura in the same smooth, easy voice he'd used with Scott. "Allison and I need to have a talk in private."

" _No_!" In a fraction of a second, Allison went from trying to claw the skin off Derek's arms to trying to climb back in them. She pushed off the exam table to wrap herself around his shoulders. Panic pounded through her veins, along with the sure knowledge that if they left her here, she'd never see them again. "Don't go! I'm sorry—I'm sorry, please don't leave me, please..." She buried her face in Derek's shoulder and clung tight.

A warm, gentle hand stroked the back of her neck. "We're not leaving you," Laura said softly. "Dr. Deaton just needs to make sure you're healthy. We can't take you to anyone else without questions."

Allison shook her head and adjusted her grip on Derek. As long as she stayed attached to him, they couldn't go.

Behind her, Dr. Deaton clicked his tongue. Heavy things shoved around, and there was a click. "Laura, why don't you let her keep your car keys?"

"What?" 

Moving as little as possible, Allison turned her head to peek at the doctor through the corner of her eye. 

He'd opened a cabinet on the far wall and was clunking around inside it, not looking at any of them. "She knows that you can't leave without your car. Right, Allison?" Raising his head, he glanced at her for a brief second, long enough for her to nod. Then he reached back, casually pulling out boxes and bags, then shoving them back on a different shelf. "So let her take your keys. She knows you'll come back for them, and that means you'll come back for her." 

Allison set her jaw, twisting to rest her cheek against Derek's shoulder instead of hiding in it. After a second, she nodded again and held out her hand to Laura, palm up. 

By the look on Laura's face, Allison was asking her to give up her own Mr. Bear. But she reached into her pocket and pulled out the car key, with its big black box and tiny buttons.  
"Don't press the red one," Laura said sternly. "Derek and I will be back in a half an hour, okay?" 

She stowed the key deep in her clothes before letting go of Derek and sliding back to the metal table. The scratches she'd left were already healed, leaving just streaks of still-damp blood that he wiped at irritably. Smiling, Allison sniffed at him once before turning her attention to Laura. "In half an hour I'll press all the buttons."

"Smug cub," Laura muttered, grabbing Derek's hand. "Come on. I saw a coffee place down the street." 

"Take Scott with you. He knows my order," Deaton called. Once the door closed, he straightened up from his work in the cabinet, pulling out a small plastic bag that he set next to a dish of cotton swabs. 

It was full of brightly colored suckers. 

Allison's eyes narrowed, and her nose twitched. "I'm not a _kid_ ," she protested, but her eyes were locked on the bag.

Metal scraped on the floor as the doctor pulled over a chair. He sat in it backwards, arms propped up on the back. She could tell he didn't sit that way much—his back was too stiff, and he took extra time to place his elbows. Whatever his reason, it relaxed her to have the extra piece of metal between them. If he were going to grab her, he'd have to get up first. "How old are you, then?" 

She shrugged, tearing her eyes away from the bag. She'd been eleven when the fire had happened, but she'd lost track of how long it had been. Less than ten winters, more than four. Counting had seemed silly, after a while. 

"Fair enough." His fingers laced across the top of the chair back. "I'm going to give you a checkup and some shots, but first I wanted to ask some questions. Is that okay?"

Allison's nose wrinkled. "No." 

That made him laugh, teeth bright white under the overhead. "At least you're direct. How about I talk, and you talk back when you want to?" Instead of waiting for an answer, he plowed on, like it was a given that she would talk to him. "Do you want to tell me what your last name is?" 

Pressing her lips together, Allison shook her head. 

"All right then." His voice stayed gentle, soft. She hated it. It made her want to trust him, just like she'd trusted Laura and Derek, and they'd left her in a strange place with a _doctor_. "Do you have any place that hurts? Your friends said you have some scars, like from a fire."

She couldn't keep herself from flinching, one hand going to her leg before she remembered and wrapped her arms around her waist instead. Hurriedly, she shook her head again, hoping he hadn't noticed.

Deaton looked at a poster on the wall instead of her. "You know, there was a fire near here about six years ago. A lot of people died. Mostly werewolves, some humans. Almost all of your friends' family. Their mother. Little sister. Cousins."

Every word made Allison shrink in on herself a little more. She kept her jaw locked and her face tight, but her shoulders pulled in. Her chest felt tight, and she could taste smoke on the back of her tongue.

"After the fire, they found the woman who did it inside. Katherine Argent." He still wasn't looking at her. "She'd had a little girl with her that night, but no one ever found her. Do you know what that little girl's name was?"

Allison forced herself to breathe. It was hard. She just wanted to hide, to run away before anything bad could happen. "Are you going to tell them?" she asked in a choked whisper. 

"Do you want me to?" 

She curled up in a ball and shook her head. Unconsciously, she reached into her clothes to wrap her hand around the car key. It was a solid weight, cutting into her palm. 

They would come back for _it_ , at least.

Deaton touched her knee, feather light and a little ticklish through her jeans. "I won't tell them, then. But you'll have to do it eventually. You can't hide forever."

Without looking up, Allison shook her head again. 

"Alright, he sighed and patted her leg. The chair scraped again. When his hand closed around her shoulder, she let him uncurl her without looking up. "Let's give you a checkup so Laura can have her car key back."

"And a sucker?" She looked up through the fall of her hair, judging his expression. "A purple one."

A tiny, sad smile twitched the corner of his mouth. "I think we can do that."

* * *

She denned up in the bathroom for a week after that, not letting either of them in just in case Deaton broke his promise. Then they would have to yell at her through the door, and she'd be able to sneak out when they were asleep.

Unless the called the police and had her arrested. She had nightmares about that. 

Derek left her food, and Laura tried to talk her out sometimes. Both of them took turns waiting on the other side of the door. When she crawled over to it and pressed her ear to the wall, she could hear them moving, sometimes breathing if she was at the right spot. It was never completely quiet. Sometimes she slept by the door, listening. As long as someone was waiting for her to come out, it meant they still cared, that they didn't know. 

Eventually, though, being alone and trapped started itching under her skin. She'd been alone for years, but now it bothered her for some reason. Allison started staying by the door more, straining to hear their voices as they talked, to the little shuffle of sound when someone brushed against the door, or the steady not-quite-silence of breathing.

When it started to be too much, Allison waited until it felt late and the voices were quiet. Then she slipped out, stepping over where Derek had made a pallet of pillows and blankets and padding into the main room. The room was lit by a little bit of blue light leaking through the pulled curtain, showing Laura sprawled on one of the beds in a dead sleep.

As carefully as she could, Allison slipped onto the bed, snuggling up to Laura's side. She smelled like Dr. Deaton's office. A bit of fur, a bit of something cold, and a lot of sharp chemicals. After a second, Laura groaned and rolled over, throwing an arm over her shoulders. "About time," she muttered. Her lips brushed the top of Allison's head. "Now stay." 

Sighing a soft agreement, Allison curled up against her side and drifted off to sleep.

* * *

When Allison woke up, dawn had started to peek in through the curtains. Laura had crawled up the bed so Allison's head was pillowed on her stomach. Derek was on the very edge of the mattress, arm stretched out so it curved over Allison's shoulder and ended on Laura's hip. His beard had gotten rougher, scraggly at the edges. 

He watched her with soft eyes, frown curling down the corners of his mouth. "Are you okay now?" he whispered, so softly she could barely hear it.

She bit her lip, thinking for a second. The room was warm and soft, and they weren't going to give her to the police. As long as they didn't know, they wouldn't leave her. It was as close to okay as she could get. So she nodded, and watched Derek's frown slide away. 

"Then go back to sleep."

Huffing, Allison shrugged, moving his arm up until she could nuzzle her cheek in his palm. His thumb stroked down her temple, across the arch of her eyebrow. 

Closing her eyes, she let Derek sooth her back into an easy doze.

* * *

Pamphlets and sheets of paper rained down from above to pile up in Allison's naked lap.

She looked up from the TV to glare. TV time wasn't something she got to have very often. Neither of the others liked it much, and the noise was annoying to their werewolf ears. But Derek was off doing something sweaty, and Laura had been gone most of the day, so she'd thought she'd be safe. 

Apparently not. "What?"

"More reading." Laura grabbed the remote control and turned it off, making Allison glare even harder. "Look at those. Tell me what you like." 

Rolling her eyes, Allison gathered up the glossy bounty in a neat stack. It took her a few minutes to decipher what they were saying. The papers were mostly pictures of houses. Pretty gardens, porches, fireplaces and big windows, with weird things printed underneath like "5/4" and "new hardwood". All of the pamphlets were more of the same, but instead they had pictures of houses being made. Big sketches of rooms, lists of prices and materials. 

She frowned and looked up. "I don't understand?"

Folding her legs, Laura dropped down next to Allison on the floor with a loud _oomph_. "Derek and I were in New York before this. You know that, right?"

Biting her lip, Allison nodded. They'd talked about it sometimes, but not much. 

"Well..." Laura reached over Allison's legs and tugged one of the pamphlets free. "We don't think you would want to go back there with us, do you?" 

Immediately, Allison wrinkled her nose. According to Derek it was loud, and crowded, and there weren't any big open places where they could run without people seeing them. As far as Allison was concerned, that made it terrible. 

But then she hesitated, looking down at the stacks of pamphlets. They crinkled as she plucked at them, shuffling them so the one with the prettiest picture was on top. She tilted her head so her hair fell just right, letting her watch Laura without being obvious. 

Laura had a wide open face, unlike Derek, who did all his speaking with his body. Just then, what it was saying was that she was worried and frustrated, with a twist of her eyebrows and a little frown pulling at her lips.

Did they find out that she'd killed their family? Was this how they were going to leave her—find her a new den and go back to New York? 

Something slick and cold twitched in Allison's stomach, threatening to crawl up into her chest. "Do you?" Her voice came out sad and small, no matter how she tried to make it firm up. "Do you want me to go? I can..." She shook her head, pulling her shoulders in. "I can go." 

"Oh, cub." Laura hitched herself up to press their sides together, slinging an arm around Allison's shoulder, warm and soft. "You don't understand. We don't want you to go—we want to stay with _you_. You're pack now." 

"Pack?" They'd used the word before, and it sounded familiar. But in her head, it didn't sound the same. She liked the way it rolled off their tongues better than it did hers. For them was a heavy word, like the way Derek looked at Laura when they were having breakfast, the feeling of Laura tucked against her back.

"Family." Somehow she'd missed Derek coming in. He had his sweat-soaked shirt off and draped over his shoulder, the sour-salt scent carrying over a second later. "Pack is family, and Laura—" His voice stuttered to a stop. Then he took a breath and finished, " _We_ want you in our pack." 

Wrinkling her nose, Laura nodded. "We want to stay with you."

Hope was a terrible, horrible, painful thing. Allison swallowed it down, blinking away tears before they could fall onto the papers. "And these?" They fanned out under her palm, beautiful houses and pictures all in a row. "What is...?"

"Houses for sale. We can't live here forever," Laura explained. "It's expensive, for one, and I'm getting kind of tired of having to fight for the mirror with Prince Poppycock over there."

Derek rolled his eyes and strolled past for the minifridge. "Your hair is easier to do than mine. You don't even blow dry it." He pulled out a brightly colored bottle of something red. Allison had tried it once, and then thrown up a lot. It was _terrible_ , and had made her stomach feel weird. But Derek swallowed half the bottle in a few pulls. 

"Because _someone_ always hogs the blow dryer," Laura shot back. She bumped Allison's knee with her own. "Doesn't he?"

Allison shrugged—it might have been only a few weeks, but she had learned not to get between them when they were like this. "So you want me to say what I like?" she pressed, tapping the pictures. "And we'll move there? A place just for us? For pack?" 

Moving wasn't a new though to her. Before the fire, there had been a lot of different houses, new places and people. When she let the thought sit on her, she liked it. Having a real den—a _house_ with Laura and Derek, where there weren't strangers all over and weird sounds sometimes. 

Maybe a place where she could hit Derek with a rock again, since it had worked so well the first time. 

Laura nodded, tearing her eyes away from Derek to smile. "Yeah. Or we can have one made. Whatever we want, as long as it's home."

This time, Allison couldn't blink fast enough to stop the tears. She threw herself at Laura, knocking her flat on her back and pressing her face into her neck. The lump in her throat was too thick to speak, so she just nodded and let Laura's shirt have her tears. 

Nearby, the floor creaked, and Derek dropped down next to them. He wrapped his arm around her waist and leaned over. Allison sniffled harder and grabbed for his arm, tugging him down until she was sandwiched between them. 

_Home._


End file.
